


Volume 2--Hulk's Origin

by LeoCharlesM



Series: Marvel's Avengers INFINITIES: Earth-6116 [2]
Category: Avengers (Comics), Marvel, Marvel (Comics), Marvel Earth-6116, Original Work, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Incredible Hulk (Comics)
Genre: Avengers - Freeform, Buddhism, Gen, Hulk - Freeform, Marvel Comics - Freeform, Marvel Earth-6116 - Freeform, Original Fiction, Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-03
Updated: 2020-01-06
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:46:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22102789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeoCharlesM/pseuds/LeoCharlesM
Summary: Welcome to Earth-6116, a special dimension in the Marvel Multiverse that is just like our world: There are no superheroes, nor super villains to oppose them. The Watcher guarding this peaceful world, Nan'c, has a vision of a menacing doom approaching from the farthest regions of the cosmos. The Earth will need the Avengers if there is any hope of survival.Volume 2 is about Tony Stark, the orphaned son of a maniac and disgraced S.H.I.E.L.D founder, Howard Stark. With his DID diagnosis under control, Tony goes on a journey to put his father's legacy to rest, but finds a gamma-powered super-soldier serum instead.
Series: Marvel's Avengers INFINITIES: Earth-6116 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1579216
Kudos: 3





	1. The Middle Way

"Master, I have a question," Tony says with his eyes closed. His legs are crossed under him and his arms spread out for balance. He slowly releases a breath through pursed lips, then breathes deep through his nostrils. "How can one truly achieve _Asura_ , if nothing is permanent?"

"The temple has been empty for an hour and a half now, brother Tony," Master Yinsen replies. "Just call me Ho—Master Yinsen was my father's name."

"I have never met your father," Tony says between breaths.

"That was meant to be a joke, brother Tony." Yinsen paces slowly around the room and finally takes a seat on a pillow opposite his disciple. "What is it about _Samsara_ that confuses you?"

"Reincarnation is a confusing subject, Master."

"Please, call me brother Ho at the very least."

"Okay, brother Ho. I have trouble reconciling how a good Buddhist can value impermanence while striving to be a demigod."

"Achieving _Asura_ is not a quest for immortality," Brother Ho speaks forcefully enough to make Tony's eyes pop open. "One does not climb the levels of enlightenment like a thief on a ladder. What does the Eightfold Path teach a Buddhist to do with his life?"

"To live the Middle Way. To be mindful and good."

"And why did Buddha call it the Middle Way?"

"Because to live free of extremes is to be enlightened."

"Correct, brother Tony." Brother Ho smiles and stands. He reaches out a hand for Tony—which he accepts—and the old man pulls the younger up to his feet. "You know, a young man your age should be out learning from his mistakes, not at the feet of a gray fool. Some people would say that it's pretty extreme to spend all your time at Temple."

"Those don't sound like the kind of people I take advice from," Tony says and flashes a tight, fleeting smile. "Thank you master—I mean, Brother." He bows. "I will see you tomorrow."

As Tony makes his exit, he's certain he can hear Ho Yinsen mutter the word "incorrigible" under his breath.

"Where are we off to, Mr. Stark?" Edwin Jarvis asks the moment Tony gets outside. The stately butler holds open the door to a pearl-white Land Rover and smiles. "Fancy a nibble before we're back?"

"The Buddhist way is about sacrifice," Tony begins.

"And what did Buddha say about celebrating birthdays?" Jarvis climbs into his seat after Tony. "Did Master Yinsen have anything special planned for you?"

"No one at temple knows when my birthday is." Tony closes his eyes and counts to three, then looks down at his watch and feels his pulse. He shakes his head, then looks up to notice that Jarvis watched all of that. "I could eat. What did you have in mind?"

"Driver already has the address," Tony's elder caretaker says with a proud little head bob. "I suppose it'll just have to be a surprise."

"So help me if there's a singing waitress with a birthday cake waiting at the end of this car ride..."

Thanks to traffic, it takes about forty minutes to get to Venice Beach, where the driver drops Tony off at a cozy speakeasy and café called Bart's. Tony's never been, but Jarvis shoos him in. It's got to be a trap, but what can he do?

Tony braces for a loud, obnoxious surprise party, but when he opens the door he finds it's a mostly empty, cozy little hole-in-the-wall. "Tony!" an older man at the back of the bar calls and raises his hand.

"Jim?" Tony says and all his trepidation vanishes. "Jim Rhodes, how the hell are you?"

"Happy Birthday, son," Colonel James Rhodes says as he embraces Tony. "How long has it been?"

"Since my graduation," Tony replies and takes a seat. "That's about four years, right?"

"Jeeze, where does the time go?" Jim has drinks waiting for them, and offers a toast. They clink glasses and Jim laughs. "You look like a young Howard, I tell you. I—" He pauses, then hangs his head. "I'm sorry, Tony. I promised myself I wouldn't bring up your father, and it's not been a minute…"

"It's okay, Jim," Tony stops him. "I've come to accept my past, and my father's role in it. I'm a Buddhist now, I go to a therapist twice a month, taking my medication every day."

"That's incredible, man. I'm proud of you. Any slip-ups lately?"

"Been six hundred and thirty-one days since the _other guy_ has gotten out," Tony says and fights down a tiny spike of warmth in his tummy. "I take it one day at a time—choosing good deeds leads to good rewards. I have a system and I'm making it work."

Jim was just a kid when he met Howard, not even old enough to drink, but Stark trusted him more than anyone in the world. They fought and won World War II together, taking down Nazis and world-wide threats long after the fighting stopped. He was a hero in his own right, but even as a Colonel, "Rhodey" would always be Howard's sidekick. The elder Stark had a gravity about him, which inspired such blind loyalty in others. It would eventually be all of their undoing.

"He was my best friend," Jim says an hour later when the meal is over and the check is paid. "I'll miss Howard every day, but he was a monster. The things he did, and would have continued to do…"

"It's a good thing his madness destroyed him before he could hurt anyone else." Tony smiles and stands.

"Make sure you send my love to what's his name—Jarvis, that's it," Jim says and embraces Tony once more. "Tell him thanks for arranging this, some of the memories are nice. Sometimes they can be, at least."

Tony doesn't say much to Jarvis on the ride home. He's lost in his own memories, some not so nice. His father was a complicated man, a fact he's paid for many times over in his young quarterlife. Thinking about him gets messy, and that's how he loses control. He's not going to let that happen.

"Jarvis, change of plans," Tony says. "Call the hangar, tell them to prep the jet to take us to New York."

"Yes sir," Jarvis intones and pulls out his cell phone. "I take it your lunch went well?"

"We'll see."

#


	2. Destiny and Legacy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony takes a walk through his father's old secret lab, and confronts the truth, Herself.

Tony doesn't bother trying to convince Jarvis to let him leave L.A. alone. The faithful Stark family footman hasn't left his side since he graduated Stanford. They board Tony's jet and Jarvis puts himself into an Ambien induced coma shortly thereafter.

Alone with his thoughts, Tony tries to take the opportunity to meditate. He works through the basic exercises and tries to probe deeper, but can't manage to focus. His mind is even harder to tame than his breathing.

A warm, tingling feeling pricks at this fingers and toes, and sets off a warning in his heart. He pulls his legs apart and quickly jumps to his feet and stretches.

"Breathe, Tony, breathe—" he sighs to himself. "You can do this. It's been twenty years, it's time to put the crimes of Howard Stark behind me."

He paces up and down the cabin, rubbing the bridge of his nose and regulating his breathing. The thought occurs to him that he can tell the pilot to turn around at any time. If he wants, they'd loop back and never talk about this dumb idea again. Jarvis would be happy for the change in itinerary, he's sure of it.

What would Master Yinsen say? He'd tell Tony that regret and shame are reminders to let go. The past is there to teach, not to usurp inspiration.

He would also say that this is a dumb idea, and that makes Tony smile. He breathes easier, and a last sits down with a collection of short stories by Stevenson to pass the flight.

"I can't remember the last time I slept through an entire flight like that," Jarvis says as they disembark. "So, are we off to the midtown flat, or would you like me to have a room prepared at the…"

"We're going to Hoboken," Tony cuts him off.

"Hoboken?" Jarvis narrows his eyes. "What on Earth would make you want to go to Hoboken?"

"You remember my mother's old place, don't you? That townhouse built into the Hudson riverfront?"

"Ms. Carbonell had quite eccentric tastes, yes."

"Both of my parents did."

"Sir?" Jarvis tilts his head in hesitance.

"I know about the secret lab, Jarvis." Tony opens the door to their car and waves Jarvis in. "Now we're going to put it to rest."

The car ride is awkward and silent. Tony has memories to chase back with rituals and practice—a system. Jarvis stares out the window, listless and paler than usual. He looks nauseous by the time they pull up to the old house.

Just before they exit the car, Jarvis makes sure to remind Tony to take his medication. He obeys right there on the spot, swallowing his pills dry. The two exit the vehicle and walk up the long stairway to the rundown brownstone. It's early evening, but the street lights are on and there is plenty of ambient illumination overhead. In the far distance, the Freedom Tower and Banner Tower jockey for tallest in New York City.

"It'd be lovely—" Jarvis pauses to shove the filthy, old door fully open, "If it weren't such a hovel."

"Relax," Tony says as he squeezes by him into the hall. "You can wait in the car, if you want. I shouldn't be long."

"That'll be quite alright," he says and follows after spryly.

Tony leads him down to the basement, then through a trap door and around a false wall into his father's old bunker. It's untouched and unchanged since Tony's youth, save for a little dust here and there. The equipment and surfaces are old but clean; almost, ready and waiting to Tony's eyes.

His father was an authority on bio-chemistry and chief tech officer with S.H.I.E.L.D. throughout and following WWII. He was a war hero who helped to stop Hitler and countless other threats before becoming one himself.

"Is this the lab you were talking about?" Jarvis asks as he rifles through some paperwork in a file cabinet. "I knew there was a bunker here, but I've never been inside before. Do you remember this place?"

"Yeah, but it was all so much bigger in my memory. He would run tests on himself here," Tony says with a faraway look in his eye, facing a glass containment chamber at the rear of the room. All of the equipment around the lab seems to feed directly to the computers surrounding the solitary container. His imagination conjures more memories the longer he stares. "And, of course, he ran tests on Gregory here. He'd bring the two of us in so he could monitor my brother, up until his passing."

"I'm sorry," Jarvis says. "Would you like some privacy?"

"You're fine, Jarvis. I barely even remember my brother, or my father. I wouldn't have come here if I wasn't ready to talk about this stuff."

"I know, Sir. And I trust you. It's just been such a long time since you've had an episode. I only mean, I don't want to trigger you."

"Me neither," Tony says and turns to smile. He walks up to a console and flips a switch but gets no response. "I bet all of this still works. We probably haven’t paid the electric bill in a couple decades, though."

"There's a video tape here," Jarvis exclaims and reaches his arm into the back of a drawer. "It's wedged way in there, but I think I can get it. There we go!"

He pulls it free and holds it up like a trophy. Tony crosses the room to take it from him. It bears a label that reads "Gregory Incident" but nothing else. "What is this?" Jarvis asks. "Shall I have them prepare a tape-player at the hotel?"

"Yes, do that, I'm right behind you. Just let me grab some light reading before we head out."

Tony digs through cabinet after cabinet without looking up to watch Jarvis leave. His eyes light up as he collects a couple folders with green bindings and tags. Before leaving he stops to take one last look at the lab. His gaze lands on the containment chamber again and this time he imagines he sees a woman staring back at him instead of his reflection.

"What the hell is going on here?" Tony croaks. He clears his throat and tries to speak in a fuller voice. That's definitely not an alter he's ever met. In fact, he's never had a vision so vivid before. "Excuse me, but who are you? How did you get in here?"

"I have been waiting for you, Tony Stark." The woman's voice is strong and clear, as though Tony can hear her in surround sound—or in his mind instead of his ears. "Watching and waiting."

"That doesn't answer my question," Tony responds warily. His heart is thumping hard in his chest. He does not know who he's talking to, but everything about this interaction feels wrong. "Give me your name."

"You may call me Nan'c, while others will call me Watcher. I have failed you, Tony. I owe you an apology, which is something I've never done before. You and your alter."

"What an honor, I'm sure." Tony relaxes a little.

"Your father, Howard Stark, was the first human mortal I ever interacted with." She conveys decades of sorrow and regret with every word she utters. "It was seventy-two of your years ago. I had a vision of an impending doom that threatens this realm of the Multiverse. In my fear and haste, I reached out to your father in the hopes that he could form an alliance of powerful warriors to defend this world from certain destruction. I thought—hoped—that I could tell him everything he would need to know to save this world."

Suddenly she weeps. "But, I was wrong."

"What are you saying?" Tony reels. This is not an alter, but she might be a monster. "How could you know my father? You hardly look older than me and he died on my…"

"Your fifth birthday." She speaks with unquestionable authority. "He intended to test his finished product on you after your birthday dinner. You don't know that because he killed himself earlier that morning, attempting to prepare the serum. His gamma containment regulator overheated destroying his lab, his research and himself in the process."

"My father would never do that to me," Tony says and turns away from Nan'c.

"He would and he did, and he did worse to your brother. Howard's tests killed Gregory as well. Your brother was only seven years old when his liver turned toxic from radiation exposure. Your father would have done the same to you, given the chance."

"Why? Why would he do this? What the hell did you tell him?"

"I cannot go back and change what I did. My mistakes drove your father to create you, and now you have a choice. You can complete your father's work, restore this lab, and use the gamma serum to save this and many other worlds from certain doom. Or, you can walk away from all this, never to hear from me again."

"If I walk away, what happens to the certain doom?" Tony looks her in the face and realizes that her youthfulness does not extend to her eyes. Thousands of years of experience seem to reside in her stare. Such gravity and regret, yet hope as well: it captivates Tony, almost makes the idea of Armageddon sound tenable. "If I walk away, who will ever believe me? How could I ever convince people it wasn't my father's fault?"

Nan'c bows her head, speaks into her chest. "No one's legacy, or destiny, is set in stone."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Tony marches up to her with his fists clenched. She fades from sight. He reaches the containment chamber and instead of seeing her there, he sees only his own reflection, staring back at him. He scowls and then turns to leave the lab behind.

"Did you say something, Sir?" Jarvis pokes his head back into the bunker from above. "Thought I heard you raise your voice."

Tony pauses before leaving entirely. He looks back at the containment chamber for any sign of Nan'c but sees only the dark outline of his own shadow glaring back at him.

#

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and rating, this is part 2/3 of this origin story. Make sure you check out part 3!


	3. Hulk vs. the System

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony lies to Jarvis, uses Jim and loses control, so the other guy steps in.

It takes three whole days to find a working VHS player, then another two searching for a television with Aux-cable inputs. In this time Tony grows increasingly interested in his father's old research. Reading through Howard's notes and findings replaces his usual meditation time.

The only thing Jarvis asks is that Tony doesn't return to the Hoboken lab without him, which Tony has no problem agreeing to. "I can't risk losing you the way I did your father," Jarvis says as he hands Tony his pills for the day. "Down the hatch, sir."

"I'll take these with my coffee, thanks Jarvis," Tony says and returns to his studies.

He's been checked out for days, even before watching the video tape, he knows something is wrong. Jarvis would never ask to see the video—it's none of his business—but he would like to know all the same. Tony can tell when Jarvis is worried; the old butler doesn't hide it well.

"Colonel Rhodes called today, sir," Jarvis tells Tony over breakfast on their ninth day in New York. "He said that he would like to meet you for lunch, if you're free today."

"And did you tell him that's impossible?"

"I, uh, well sir, he does work for S.H.I.E.L.D, you see. He knows you're in New York." Jarvis lays it on thick.

"Oh does he now? I wonder how that happened. Never mind that anyway, tell him I'm too busy this afternoon."

"Are you, sir?" Jarvis is feeling frisky today, apparently. "I only mean that you've been buried so deeply in your father's old nonsense that I'm afraid…"

"Jarvis, it's none of your concern how I work through my trauma."

"That's true, sir." Jarvis looks wounded. "But your well-being is my concern, and I thought—Rhodey thought really—"

Tony shushes him and agrees but on one condition: Rhodey has to drive.

Jim shows up in a black SUV and asks where they're going. Tony says they're not getting lunch, then directs him to the Holland Tunnel.

"We're not getting lunch, and I have to drive to New Jersey? No fair."

"Jim, I want to show you my father's old lab before I destroy it." The words come out mechanical, more rehearsed than Tony means. "I've put a lot of thought into this, and I think the world would be better off without my father's research."

"Why now? Why me?"

"Because Jarvis would never allow me to do it? Or maybe I could never do it with him there—I'm not sure. All I know is I need your help."

How could Jim argue with that? They passed the time talking about a new colleague of Jim's who also has a DID diagnosis. She's a black belt in three different martial arts and a children's karate instructor on weekends. Rhodes couldn't help laughing about how drastically different Tony and she treated their disorder.

"Violence is the last thing I need to be training in," Tony remarks as they pull up to the old townhouse. "Could you imagine how dangerous the _other guy_ would be?"

It takes Jim a beat to get that Tony is joking around. He laughs when he realizes the joke's on him.

They get inside the townhouse and Tony's immediately struck by how different it looks. Jim has no clue and just sees an old, abandoned home that he's never been in before. But not Tony, he knows something's wrong immediately. "Where is all the garbage?" Tony asks, tiptoeing down the main hallway.

"You kidding? Just look around. This place is a ruin."

"That's not what I mean. This hallway has been cleared out, and can you hear that? Sounds like the hum of electricity."

"Is there a generator running nearby?" Jim follows Tony down to the bunker. "Whoa, this is pretty old-fashioned. Never thought I'd see one of these bad boys again. You know what they made these bunkers for, don't you?"

"If I had to guess," Tony says as he throws a switch and illuminates his father's old lab. "Gamma radiation testing?"

Jim's jaw drops as Tony enters the fully functioning, active laboratory. The tech is old, and the bio samples are tiny, but Howard's old work has been completely restored. Readouts on the monitors all show the same thing: Howard's serum works.

"Tony, what is this?" Jim's voice is thin and hoarse.

"It looks like someone has restored my father's old work," Tony says as he thumbs through a stack of papers. His hands trace over the surfaces with eerie familiarity, as if from a dream. "Someone got this lab up and running right under my nose."

"What do you mean, _someone_ , Tony?" Jim's eyes are lost, staring deep into Tony's as though he's seeing him for the first time. "When was the last time you took your meds, Tony?"

"How dare you ask me a…" Tony trails off when he reaches his hand into his right pocket. The tip of his finger brushes against one of the pills Jarvis gave him at breakfast. In that moment he puts it all together, and realizes that Jim has as well. "You know I've got it under control. I have a system."

A chime sounds from the computer terminal in the back of the room. Then the containment chamber bursts open with a hiss and glows a warm, green hue.

"Did the _other guy_ do this by himself?" Jim's voice is low and his body hunches forward. He looks deflated, defeated. "Am I even speaking to Tony, right now?"

A warm and fuzzy tingling washes up and down his frame, but Tony can't fight it this time. It fills him up like helium in a balloon, blocks out all the questions, all the doubts, all the fears and insecurities. He glares down at his heartbroken friend and knows exactly what to say: "It's simple, Jim—if you don't help me, I'll end up just like my father did. So don't think about it, don't fight it, just ask me how you can help."

Tears stream down Rhodey's face as he says, "How can I help?"

Tony gives him the sequence and runs him through it till he's solid. Jim is obedient as a broken mustang, or a whipped fighting dog. There's no fire left in the old warrior.

"I'm going to enter in the algorithm and then inject the gamma serum, begin the countdown, and then it's all up to you. Got it, Jim?"

"Got it."

"You trust me?"

"Got it…"

"That works," Tony says and starts the countdown.

_Ten…_ Tony steps into the pod and it closes behind him. _Nine_ … He straps his legs and waist into the harnesses. _Eight_ … Jim starts clicking away at the keyboard in front of him. _Seven_ … Tony puts a mouth guard between his teeth. _Six_ … Jim presses enter and a red light starts flashing on the power source. _Five_ … A warning claxon blares, but Jim is ready for it. _Four_ … Jim suppresses the sound by flipping a huge power switch. _Three_ … A loud, electronic vibration fills the chamber and sets Tony's teeth rattling. _Two_ … Jim runs back to the keyboard and presses a button. _One_ … The vibrating hum grows in pitch and volume till Tony fears he'll blackout.

Suddenly the chamber around Tony fills with a sweet, metallic scent that he breathes in quickly. He raises his hands to block the terrible sound from his ears, but feels so faint he can't manage.

"Tony!" Jim shouts and bangs on the glass chamber. It's the last thing Tony can remember before he succumbs entirely…

"There you go big guy," Jim says when Tony's eyes start to flicker open. "Take your time. You passed out, but you're okay."

"Where am I?" Tony asks as he rubs the bridge of his nose and then his eyeballs. "How long was I out? My eyes feel like they're burning."

"Only a couple of minutes," Jim answers quickly. "I moved you to the cot when the chamber was cleared of the gas. I'll see if I can find some eye drops for you, hang on."

He hears Jim walk out of the lab and into one of the storage areas. Tony knows he won't find any eye drops, but is happy for the privacy. He slowly sits upright and opens his eyes. He looks down at himself and sees that there's nothing out of the ordinary. If his eyes weren't so itchy, he'd think nothing had happened at all.

Then he gets a sight of himself in the mirror. "What the hell happened?" He shouts and leaps from the bed, knocking it into the nearby nightstand. "My eyes are green and they're glowing like neon lights! Jim, what's going on?"

A boiling hot stinging bursts through his veins, starting in his toes before burning its way up every inch of his skin. It's like he's being dipped in an invisible vat of molten lava. Tony is terrified, he's never felt so out overwhelmed by his alternate identity. Blackness flows up to envelope him as his alter bursts through and takes over.

In the final moments before fully retreating, Tony sees Jim re-enter the lab. " _Run_!" He tries to warn Jim, but the fury has taken hold.

"Tony?" Jim says as he looks up at a giant, green glowing hulk of a monster.

"No, Tony," he growls back. "Only, Hulk!"

# The End #

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for reading and please feel free to leave comments! If you enjoyed this, make sure you check out Volume 3—Iron Man!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading and rating part 1/3 of this origin story. Make sure you check out part 2!


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